Prince George Cougars' Jesse Gabrielle is ready for a reunion with the Regina Pats

Jesse Gabrielle looks forward to renewing acquaintances with a few old friends from the Regina Pats on Saturday.

He hopes the feeling is mutual.

The WHL’s most-notorious agitator is slated to make his first appearance at the Brandt Centre as a member of the Prince George Cougars, who acquired Gabrielle from Regina last summer.

The pot-stirring winger has no intention of holding back against his former teammates, even if he does have a bit of a soft spot for them.

“They know the way I play,” noted Gabrielle, 18. “I just hope they don’t have any hard feelings after the game.”

Gabrielle’s unique style is conducive to love-hate relationships.

The Pats loved having him on their side but hated lining up against him when he played for the rival Brandon Wheat Kings.

The Moosomin product was traded to Regina midway through last season, commencing a 42-game run that was rarely boring.

Although it’s now a long-distance relationship, Gabrielle has maintained strong ties to the Pats’ organization. He’d like to think those bonds will survive Saturday’s encounter — regardless of what might occur on the ice,

“I loved my time in Regina, made a lot of good friends,” said Gabrielle. “I loved the city, my billets were great, my teammates were phenomenal. I loved the coaches and the management and the staff. It was great for me. I hope they feel the same way. Hopefully they’re going to want to come see me after the game, if they’re not too hurt by what I say or angry about what I do.”

Gabrielle’s infamous verbal exchanges have been known to take a personal tone, but in his mind it’s simply business.

That’s how it was when he played for Brandon and Regina and it’s still the case with Prince George, where he has blossomed into one of the WHL’s top scorers.

Heading into Friday’s game against the Wheat Kings, Gabrielle was tied for the team lead with 32 goals and 58 points in 53 games. He was also tied for second in the league’s goal-scoring race and ranked first with six short-handed markers.

“I feel like I’m achieving what I wanted to do and helping the team win as much as possible,” said Gabrielle. “My coach in Prince George (Mark Holick) believes in me and puts me in every situation, which is key. Everything (else) is the same. Obviously I’m getting older but my style is still the same.”

The Pats have prepared accordingly, knowing full well how effective Gabrielle can be when he gets opponents off their game while also avoiding undisciplined penalties.

It’s a fine line.

“He’s a guy who likes to get under your skin and feeds off the reaction you give him,” said Pats captain Adam Brooks. “It’s going to be fun playing Jesse, especially now that we know his personality. When he was in Brandon at 16 he did a lot of damage to our team but guys are probably going to be able to laugh a little bit knowing the kind of player he is.”

Although controversy tends to follow Gabrielle, the Pats have had nothing but good things to say about his time with the club. When they traded him to P.G. for 17-year-old right-winger Lane Zablocki, head coach/GM John Paddock insisted he wouldn’t have made the deal if Gabrielle was a year younger.

“It’s a deal that worked out for both teams; I know they’re happy with it and we’re happy with it,” said Paddock, who expects Gabrielle to be up to his old tricks during Saturday’s game.

“I don’t think his style is ever going to change much. He’s going to be fired up because Jesse is fired up 99 per cent of the time. He’s obviously having a really good year. It’s not surprising. I’m glad for Jesse. We had a good relationship here.

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